Several Facebook campaigns have been launched this month to raise
awareness for breast cancer; users can donate money to a charity,
post a pink ribbon on their page, or, in this case, download an
application that turns their whole profile picture pink. Facebook
scammers are usually the first ones to pounce on a popular event
or
trending topic like this, but researcher Graham Cluley from
the anti-virus company Sophos says this is an instance where a
widely spread Facebook campaign has no agenda other than to unite
people and show support for a cause.

Cluley found a
warning attached to one of the apps that says, with several
grammatical errors, "ABC News 24 just released a statement about
a virus on Facebook app that adds a pink tinge to your profile
picture to 'raise money for cancer.' Be aware this fake
third-party app installs a virus on the machine you used to
access the app. Apparently its [sic] a keylogger malware that
searches for bank details and passwords etc. Facebook allows
keylogger in its apps to aid predictive search algorithms, and
therefore the virus hasnt [sic] been picked up."

The warning is "balderdash," Cluley wrote on a Sophos blog. "ABC
News has released no such warning, the app is not malicious and
we have seen no evidence that it contains a
keylogger. The truth is that your Facebook friends are doing
something positive — helping raise money and awareness for the
fight against breast cancer."

Just as it's important to check reputable sources — not your
Facebook friends — for news, by the same token, Facebook posts
are not the place to find computer security advice.